A Sheffield based tennis coaching programme has received recognition for their efforts towards promoting inclusivity in the sport.
Ability Tennis holds sessions for people with physical, learning and sensory disabilities, and was awarded the Tennis For All (Inclusion) and the Connecting Communities Awards at the LTA Yorkshire Tennis Awards last Thursday.
Founder Ben Howarth, who also received a personal commendation from Yorkshire Tennis President Geoff Newton, said: “It just felt very nice to be around positive people who have all done something in tennis.
“If you’ve done something and you enjoy it, just giving back and getting more people involved in doing something you love is just really important.”
The programme holds regular weekly sessions for all levels of ability across Sheffield, and prioritises teaching in a way that engages people with disabilities in the sport.
These include teaching in a wheelchair for the weekly wheelchair session, and using specialised sponge balls to act as audio cues to aid people with visual impairments.
At the centre of the programme’s success however, is the strong sense of community felt by its members.
At the programme’s wheelchair tennis session at Graves Leisure Centre, longtime participant Lottie Davis-Browne said: “It’s the friendship, it’s having structure in your week. We all sort of understand what each other are going through.”
For Mr Howarth, this positivity and understanding is also crucial to his work, he said: “The enjoyment that you see is far more rewarding than getting the award itself.
“The day-to-day is what keeps me going.”
For the coaches and players, encouraging others to attend and get involved is a huge part of their efforts, and they are determined that there should be no barriers to inclusion.
Mr Howarth said: “If anybody is interested, either volunteering or wanting to take part in sessions, people are welcome to come. They don’t have to take part straight away.
“They can bring down their carers and just have a cup of tea and watch what we do if they’re nervous.
“That first step’s the hardest thing to take sometimes, and everyone is welcome.”
The coaches can be contacted via: https://abilitytennis.co.uk/
